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Ask HN: Please help me to understand how key/value stores can back databases?
Please explain it like I am five.
How is it that a simple key/value store can be used as a backing store for a more sophisticated type of database?
I don't see how the more complex data model of a graph database or a sql database maps down to keys and values.
- brudgers 11y agoWhen my boy was five we watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail together...many times since I bought the DVD. I wanted to make sure he could blame me if he turned out to be a messed up adult. There are times when it is useful to apply the Turing tarpit, a database is still just bits in memory, there's no magic, just a well defined interface to which some particular combination of code and data structure conforms. A key is a pointer and a pointer is an edge in a graph. How the value is interpreted determines is left to the implementor. If the value is interpreted as a tuple and has a predetermined form, then you can get to a relational (or SQL) database. If the value is interpreted as a pointer you can get to a graph database. If the value is interpreted as a document you get some other sort of database. If you're really interested in databases, Database Systems: the Complete Book is an introductory text that I enjoyed last year. I picked up a used copy of an older edition for less than $10 online. http://infolab.stanford.edu/~ullman/dscb.html http://infolab.stanford.edu/~ullman/dscb.html